Rex Drives into Battle! (...As Pyra's Final Smash!!)

[PSIGuy]

The fact we haven't seen a tag character who wasn't just "Make a fighter, Crtl+C and Crtl+V them and slightly desync them" might be because it's really difficult to execute. Icies were the same character copy-pasted, Diddy/Dixie who were supposedly separate fighters in one slot got scrapped, Luma was more of an advanced prop than it's own fighter (it even ran at 30FPS on 3DS like all non-fighter characters did). All of those characters can also function if one half gets KO'd while Rex/Pyra can't. Rex+Pyra would have to succeed as separate characters in one slot in a way that Diddy/Dixie did not, AND be balanced around either losing a stock when either of them dies or one of them being functionally immortal.

 

[fogbadge]

i dont get the whole "ive seen a character like this many times before" thing surely weve all seen any kind of character many times before at this point in fiction no character is completely unique

 

[Idon]

Honestly, I just want him in for XC2's BANGIN' OST

 

[fogbadge]

Honestly, I just want him in for XC2's BANGIN' OST

we may get that anyway

 

[SmashChu]

I actually ended up really liking Rex's character by the end of the game. Sure, he's not exactly an archetype that hasn't been done before, the bleeding heart but determined protagonist, but he had a few quirks and by the end of the game I really enjoyed him. I didn't enjoy him as much as say, Shulk, but I still think he was pretty alright. The supporting cast was definitely the strong point of the game.

I utterly despise the majority of the villains. Their writing tried to be more compelling than it was, and most of them ended up feeling like caricatures or their plot just didn't make sense when you put it under a microscope. Looking at you, samuraiboi.

The story was super great though, especially the last few chapters, and the huge twist was something I did not see coming. Kudos to the writing team.

As for the tag characters, I wouldn't put stock in say, there needing to be one. I think Rex+Pyra just happen to have enough of a unique concept going for them that Sakurai would consider them strongly, especially since we know he loved the game.

Rex isn't a bad character, he's just an overdone one. He works for the story because he tends to act as a spring board for other characters. His goofy optimism works because the game has a lot of the characters focusing on the problems of the words and not the good things, which Rex does see. He gets better at the end and more realized, but I think they could have done more with his character. Again, not bad, just cookie cutter.

Malos was great just because of his VA and him and Jin work well with the plot. The problem is Jin's dumb anime powers (which needed someone to proofread it to say "this is dumb." SPOILERS,

Spoiler

but Jin didn't need to change elementary particles to move at the speed of light. In fact, just say he moves at the speed of sounds. That's at least believable. Moving that fast means the characters can never really beat him and makes the beginning of Chapter 7 lose some of its lusters despite being a great scene. Also, why does this society who doesn't have great technology know what absolute zero is, something we still can't reach in a lab. Again, he just needs to make it really cold since they'd die once their internal temperature falls too low. Again, toning it down makes it seem less silly. The other members of Torna didn't get enough screen time to make them work.

As for the tag character thing, I'm more saying its something Sakurai seems to gravitate towards. Maybe he thinks its a good way to make unique characters in the context of Smash? There are a lot of other things going in these character's favor. The fact that this is a sequel to Xenoblade 1, the fact it fits thematically with Shulk, their unique design and gameplay opportunities. and the fact that the game has a cult following

The fact we haven't seen a tag character who wasn't just "Make a fighter, Crtl+C and Crtl+V them and slightly desync them" might be because it's really difficult to execute. Icies were the same character copy-pasted, Diddy/Dixie who were supposedly separate fighters in one slot got scrapped, Luma was more of an advanced prop than it's own fighter (it even ran at 30FPS on 3DS like all non-fighter characters did). All of those characters can also function if one half gets KO'd while Rex/Pyra can't. Rex+Pyra would have to succeed as separate characters in one slot in a way that Diddy/Dixie did not, AND be balanced around either losing a stock when either of them dies or one of them being functionally immortal.

In the game, Blades can't be attacked. They only die when the player dies. In fact, if they fall off a ledge in the game, they just come right back. Its easier to treat Pyra like an assist trophy where they can't really be knocked off but just stunned. They essentially work where Diddy and Dixie did not because the only one that will matter is Rex. Pyra will be there to give affinity, blade arts (temp buffs), block attacks and weapon toss (which will likely be a special move).

EDIT: Sorry for the double post. Thought this was a different thread.

 

[Bootortle]

I picked up Xenoblade 2 not too long ago, and I'd definitely like to see Rex join smash

 

[BluePikmin11]

Beaten Chapter 9 of Xenoblade 2. It was not until that chapter that I started to connect everything about Blades, themes, and story. It all started to come together. Pretty sweet story so far, though I wish such big twists and interesting plot information happened in each 1/10th of the story, cause 7/10th of the story was pretty boring.

 

[TCT~Phantom]

People are talking about how their designs were not finalized until August and September of 2016 do not realize that that still fits a roster window for Smash 5. The game started in likely May. I would expect 6 months for a final roster tbh.

 

[Deleted member]

People are talking about how their designs were not finalized until August and September of 2016 do not realize that that still fits a roster window for Smash 5. The game started in likely May. I would expect 6 months for a final roster tbh.

Isn't that only in reference to their facial expressions too? That means their actual designs were finalized prior to that.

The art isn't really an issue; it's whether or not Sakurai felt if he could make a moveset for them without playing their game and if he wanted to take a risk of sorts with their inclusion. No idea if his playthrough of the game was research for their moveset since idk how placeholders in the dev cycle work. Either way they're frontrunners for DLC (especially since XC2 is getting new DLC content until at least late this year), so I'm not too worried about them.

 

[Dr. Jojo Phantasma]

Where is the source that their designs were finalized in those times? Either way though, I still don't think it will be an issue.

 

[BluePikmin11]

Spoiler: Xenoblade 2 Overall Thoughts

I just finished this game today, and I thought the ending was absolutely fantastic and it almost made me cry, even though some parts of it was a re-tread of XC1 (Which does make sense in regards to the world being reborn though). The ending, music, Heart-to-Hearts, and game design with powering up Blades made playing through Xenoblade 2 absolutely worth it. The only big problem I have is 70% of the main story. Passing aside the side-quests that fleshes out the characters, Rex and Pyra are just flat out boring. They are characterized in very typical ways, and do not have much distinct personalities nor interesting development to get me caring about these characters. I had to mostly had to just go with its typicalness and see how the story would develop.

Had time been given to flesh out character development for the main story, I would have been further motivated to play through this game. Even though I do praise the gameplay, it almost feels like an un-even experience if what I am playing through and battling was just for a character relationship arc of Rex/Pyra that generally felt incomplete and messy. I hope Monolith Soft takes their time for the next Xenoblade game, because with Xenoblade 2 generally feeling un-polished on the story side, they will have to listen to fan-feedback if they want XC3 to be the best Xenoblade game ever created.

That said, now I am more interested about Klaus and the multi-universe matter. I wonder how all universes will connect in future XC games. I wonder, when the final Xenoblade game comes, will there be a story ending that closes all questions regarding Klaus' origins. Will we get a game that has Klaus as the protagonist? I am still looking forward to what Monolith Soft has to offer, even though these two recent XC games they made have flaws story-wise.

 

[fogbadge]

Spoiler: Xenoblade 2 Overall Thoughts

I just finished this game today, and I thought the ending was absolutely fantastic and it almost made me cry, even though some parts of it was a re-tread of XC1 (Which does make sense in regards to the world being reborn though). The ending, music, Heart-to-Hearts, and game design with powering up Blades made playing through Xenoblade 2 absolutely worth it. The only big problem I have is 70% of the main story. Passing aside the side-quests that fleshes out the characters, Rex and Pyra are just flat out boring. They are characterized in very typical ways, and do not have much distinct personalities nor interesting development to get me caring about these characters. I had to mostly had to just go with its typicalness and see how the story would develop.

Had time been given to flesh out character development for the main story, I would have been further motivated to play through this game. Even though I do praise the gameplay, it almost feels like an un-even experience if what I am playing through and battling was just for a character relationship arc of Rex/Pyra that generally felt incomplete and messy. I hope Monolith Soft takes their time for the next Xenoblade game, because with Xenoblade 2 generally feeling un-polished on the story side, they will have to listen to fan-feedback if they want XC3 to be the best Xenoblade game ever created.

That said, now I am more interested about Klaus and the multi-universe matter. I wonder how all universes will connect in future XC games. I wonder, when the final Xenoblade game comes, will there be a story ending that closes all questions regarding Klaus' origins. Will we get a game that has Klaus as the protagonist? I am still looking forward to what Monolith Soft has to offer, even though these two recent XC games they made have flaws story-wise.

Spoiler

the opening to chapter 10 and learning the games connection to original really is something

 

[BluePikmin11]

I am crying internally right now, I actually miss Nia and the other XC2 characters so much. Letting this game go so easily without much thought was a bad idea... ;_;

 

[RawstyleEevee]

So yeah, don't know if you guys have seen it yet, but Takahashi's wife has retweeted the E3 direct, so this most likely means info on the story dlc for XB2 and if we are lucky a reveal for Rex & Pyra(honestly not that farfetched seeing that the Inkling reveal also was a bit of a tie in with the Splatoon 2 DLC), because when she retweets directs, there is always Xeno content in some form

 

[TCT~Phantom]

Apparently some people are saying since Pyra's VA is saying she has not heard anything about smash is deconfirming. There is such a thing as an NDA.

 

[Kotor]

Apparently some people are saying since Pyra's VA is saying she has not heard anything about smash is deconfirming. There is such a thing as an NDA.

She's definitely under a NDA. A Xenoblade 2 NDA regarding the upcoming Story DLC. Plus, didn't Matt Mercer (Chrom's VA) say something similar during the per-Smash 4 period?

 

[Nekoo]

Apparently some people are saying since Pyra's VA is saying she has not heard anything about
smash is deconfirming. There is such a thing as an NDA.

She's definitely under a NDA. A Xenoblade 2 NDA regarding the upcoming Story DLC. Plus, didn't Matt Mercer (Chrom's VA) say something similar during the per-Smash 4 period?

Just jumping in the thread because I think I might help clear this issue, or at least explain why people think it's deconfirming her for Smash-
For being someone who infact have been under NDA, one of the most common rules is "Be vague, never deconfirm or confirm things close to your project."
Matt Mercer, Chrom's VA, when asked for Smash and if Chrom would be playable or appears said

" I currently have not been approached and asked about this, but MAN WOULD I LOVE FOR THIS TO HAPPEN. As a huge fan of the Smash Bros series (heck, look at my webseries!), I would love to. Chrom seems like an easy fit, and follows the trend of previous Smash Bros games... so just keep your fingers crossed, and be SUPER VERBAL to Nintendo about your NEED to have Chrom in the game!"

The interview was around 2013, so only a year in development. It is not crazy to say that with the way he's so upbeat about it, he wasn't Cast yet to reprise his role, and could show his support, the dub recording probably happened in 2014 and I wouldn't be surprised if he recorded the trailer alongside all of his intervention. THOUGH it does look like what Pyra's VA said HOWEVER.

Pyra's Case is different, the game is out in less than Six months. If Rex/Pyra were in the game, she would already be casted and be under NDA. To give you an exemple, this is what Matt Mercer said when he's on something with NDA

I am working on a LOT, but most of it is under heavy NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement), sadly, but I can say there are some really cool things coming up.

While Matt was asked this during an Interview, Pyra's VA was just streaming when she got this question- while she could have avoided it, she outright deconfirmed and said that it would be cool, like Matt did...
The problem being the second deconfirmation- she had NO reason to do this, since IMDB can be edited by literally anyone. However she did step in to stop the rumor-

Under NDA you would rather let that rumor pass and not say anything...After all, all publicity are good to take in the case of Smash with it's speculation.


Anyway, does not give up! Even if she and Rex aren't in the base roster, MAYBE she can be added as DLC! And I wouldn't be surprised at all! Luck to you guys!

 

[RandomAce]

Just jumping in the thread because I think I might help clear this issue, or at least explain why people think it's deconfirming her for Smash-
For being someone who infact have been under NDA, one of the most common rules is "Be vague, never deconfirm or confirm things close to your project."
Matt Mercer, Chrom's VA, when asked for Smash and if Chrom would be playable or appears said

The interview was around 2013, so only a year in development. It is not crazy to say that with the way he's so upbeat about it, he wasn't Cast yet to reprise his role, and could show his support, the dub recording probably happened in 2014 and I wouldn't be surprised if he recorded the trailer alongside all of his intervention. THOUGH it does look like what Pyra's VA said HOWEVER.

Pyra's Case is different, the game is out in less than Six months. If Rex/Pyra were in the game, she would already be casted and be under NDA. To give you an exemple, this is what Matt Mercer said when he's on something with NDA

While Matt was asked this during an Interview, Pyra's VA was just streaming when she got this question- while she could have avoided it, she outright deconfirmed and said that it would be cool, like Matt did...
The problem being the second deconfirmation- she had NO reason to do this, since IMDB can be edited by literally anyone. However she did step in to stop the rumor-

Under NDA you would rather let that rumor pass and not say anything...After all, all publicity are good to take in the case of Smash with it's speculation.


Anyway, does not give up! Even if she and Rex aren't in the base roster, MAYBE she can be added as DLC! And I wouldn't be surprised at all! Luck to you guys!

In my opinion, there’s also the fact that making voice lines doesn’t take long to make in the case for Smash.

Sure a 100 hour game will take hours of voice clips, but a fighting game like Smash requires much less voice clips that can be done in a couple of days.

I feel that if Rex and Pyra were in the game, they would’ve first made the lines for the Japanese voice actors and then contacted the English voice actors.

 

[Dr. Jojo Phantasma]

It is also a possibility that Rex and Pyra could use recycled lines from XC2, I mean there are plenty of Smash worthy quotes that they could use.

 

[TCT~Phantom]

Also there is the possibility of them reusing voice lines from XC2. Reusing simple grunts and a few lines is not that hard.

 

[Nekoo]

It is also a possibility that Rex and Pyra could use recycled lines from XC2, I mean there are plenty of Smash worthy quotes that they could use.

Also there is the possibility of them reusing voice lines from XC2. Reusing simple grunts and a few lines is not that hard.

They would still be under NDA, and would probably have to record trailer voice's, as a duo it would be something Sakurai do, beside, every talking newcomers had unique voiceline for it's trailer in 4. Even DLC, like Roy/Cloud/Bayonetta/Ryu had to record unique voiceline for trailers.

 

[TCT~Phantom]

One other possibility is they have not yet started recording for the dub.

 

[Nekoo]

One other possibility is they have not yet started recording for the dub.

That is a posibility, but a VERY unlikely one. Though I can't dissmiss that-
BUT even if they didn't started recording the dub, she would have been casted and just wait for the recording day.

I think it's a 50/50, but it's undeniable that the VA deconfirming twice is still a big hit to that chance

 

[Dr. Jojo Phantasma]

I won't give up hope, but I will start getting into the mindset that they will end up being DLC. They are definitely frontrunners along with Spring Man.

 

[BluePikmin11]

I find it likely that Rex/Pyra will use their JP voices for Smash Switch with localization. Xenoblade 2's dub is... subpar at best.

 

[Dr. Jojo Phantasma]

I did think it was possible that Rex and Pyra will end up getting Cloud'd, but eh I like Rex and Pyra's English voices, but oh well if they go that way.

 

[GolisoPower]

I did think it was possible that Rex and Pyra will end up getting Cloud'd, but eh I like Rex and Pyra's English voices, but oh well if they go that way.

Agreed there. I personally like the English voices of the game, although some parts were a little...off. But regardless, if Rex and Pyra were coming to Smash, maybe there could be an option to switch between English and Japanese voices for the characters? Zelda and Xenoblade 2 did it, why not now?

 

[PSIGuy]

I find it likely that Rex/Pyra will use their JP voices for Smash Switch with localization. Xenoblade 2's dub is... subpar at best.

That's a pretty absurd thing to assume. Nintendo isn't going to insult their own work by not keeping character voices consistent, and the only cases where characters did keep their JP voices were thematically appropriate (Marth, Roy) or due to some unknown constraint (Cloud). It'd be like Shulk not having his old VA, when it was part of what made XB1 stand out.

 

[Nekoo]

>Not wanting Rex to go OII MAYTE
The *** VA is alright, but if they get in, they better get the Dub.

 

[fogbadge]

That's a pretty absurd thing to assume. Nintendo isn't going to insult their own work by not keeping character voices consistent, and the only cases where characters did keep their JP voices were thematically appropriate (Marth, Roy) or due to some unknown constraint (Cloud). It'd be like Shulk not having his old VA, when it was part of what made XB1 stand out.

im sure i read that we do know the reason why cloud didnt have his english voice actor

 

[RawstyleEevee]

Honestly i'm more worried if Rex's voice actor deconfirmed it, Pyra could also be just his final smash, like they recycled Dunban's voice in Smash 4. It would take away of the source of the character, but well we have other characters like that in the roster like Ganondorf

 

[SmashChu]

I am crying internally right now, I actually miss Nia and the other XC2 characters so much. Letting this game go so easily without much thought was a bad idea... ;_;

Xenoblade 2 does that to you. While Rex and Pyra are fairly dull (if only because those characters have been done to death), the rest of the cast is top notch. I will say the story is a lot stronger on a second playthrough as there is a lot you can miss the first time, especially if you're going in blind. If you like it, try t do NG+. The mode adds a ton of new blades, an updated affinity chart, the ability to remove story Blades, EXP vendors and adjusting levels and the third accessory slot which makes the game amazing, and it's hard to go back to the normal way. I would suggest doing a few of the Blade quest (Ursual, Agate and KOSMOS) first. Also, if you didn't kill the baby Armu, feed him to Lv99 and kill him. The tombstone stays. Also, grind for Legendary Core.

Also, a lot of the new Blades are great on Nia so it gives her a second life

She's definitely under a NDA. A Xenoblade 2 NDA regarding the upcoming Story DLC. Plus, didn't Matt Mercer (Chrom's VA) say something similar during the per-Smash 4 period?

Yes. There is one interview (posted already) and a YouTube video from a panel that was a month before Robin's trailer. I think Lucina's VA was the same way but I can't remember.

I should note that Skye has been very careful about what she says (likely as this was a big break for her). Her stream didn't start for 2 months as he had to get Nintendo's blessing, so I'm sure she is careful about what she says. She also said in an interview with Jay RPG interview that she had no gigs, but this likely isn't true because of the story DLC which we know her character is a part of (look up Xenoblade 2 datamine for why but beware as it will spoil a lot about upcoming content). I think Jay RPG also mentioned interviews will be hard to get as Nintendo is reminding everyone who worked on it about NDAs, which is interesting.

 

[MetroLSD]

I'm unfamiliar with Xenoblade 2 but would a Ice Climbers/Rosa&Luma playstyle for Rex be fateful to the way the Drives work in the game?

 

[fogbadge]

I'm unfamiliar with Xenoblade 2 but would a Ice Climbers/Rosa&Luma playstyle for Rex be fateful to the way the Drives work in the game?

a similar mechanic would make sense, but to be faithful to the game pyra wouldnt attack any characters directly and wouldnt take any damage

 

[MetroLSD]

a similar mechanic would make sense, but to be faithful to the game pyra wouldnt attack any characters directly and wouldnt take any damage

So something like Pokemon Trainer in Brawl with Pyra standing in the background of the stage?

 

[FamicomDisk]

So something like Pokemon Trainer in Brawl with Pyra standing in the background of the stage?

That's what I'm imagining, yeah! In Xenoblade 2, Pyra is usually standing a short distance away from Rex, giving him powers while he fights. She is capable of fighting on her own, but she only attacks when a special move is happening. Cutscenes show her fighting a bit more, but the vast majority of the time, she's just supplying power to Rex while he fights.

 

[MetroLSD]

Any ideas for Rex's down ?

I was thinking something similar to Shulk's but with Rex changing Drives

 

[RawstyleEevee]

Any ideas for Rex's down ?

I was thinking something similar to Shulk's but with Rex changing Drives

Doesn't he have an art called rolling smash?

 

[Rie Sonomura]

Sharing this quote from the Elma thread:

Since my first most wanted newcomer (Fiora) got the Chrom treatment in yesterday’s reveals, I’m now fully backing Elma and Rex/Pyra!

It’s true, I don’t think Elma is exactly E3 material, unlike Ridley. And they COULD have revealed Rex to tie in to the Xenoblade 2 DLC announcement, but they didn’t. Something tells me they’re saving a dual reveal for a future Direct, hopefully one in which a Switch port for X is announced, assuming the 10 hinted characters thing is true and there’s still a handful more non-DLC characters to go.

Part of me wants to write up a mock trailer script (what I was infamous for back in the day) but I’m kinda not very confident on it, especially since some concepts may be rehashed. Some.

 

[Dr. Jojo Phantasma]

I was thinking that maybe we could get Rex and Pyra as Mii outfits( along with other XBC2 characters) to hold us down until they can properly be characters in dlc.